Using a rowing machine can help you burn a lot of calories, sometimes as many as 800 an hour. Considering that you are sitting down, it hardly feels like a work out at all! I’m joking of course, but it is certainly an exercise that almost anyone can do as it is low-impact in nature.

The movements of rowing need you to move your arms backwards and forwards over and over again. Your heart loves that! The elevated circulation towards the heart is ideal for improving coronary heart health. As mentioned earlier, It’s a low impact physical exercise that’s easy on the legs and ankles. Rowing is suitable for anybody from the incredibly fit, to beginners, to those who are recovering from an injury or surgery.

Rowing means that your entire body is active. This alone shows how a rowing machine benefits you! You need to use every part of your body to row as well. It certainly feels like an overall total body exercise the next day.

I’d really like to stress that rowing is a great low impact alternative to using other types of exercise equipment, such as treadmills or cross trainers. Like jogging, rowing can make use of every muscle and increases the amount of muscle activity for the whole body. And since it calls for all the muscles to work, rowing can be classified as a total body workout. Trust me, it will certainly feel like you’ve had a whole body workout by the time you have finished!

Working out or training on a rowing machine helps make the upper and lower body stronger and works out all those important muscles. And the good thing about this is that you can work your legs, arms, shoulders, and lower back without inflicting any impact on the joints, as it is a fairly low risk exercise so long as the proper technique is used

Warming Up Before Rowing

Begin your movements at a slow and steady pace for a few minutes to get your heart rate up and your muscle pours open and breathing. After about five minutes, continuously increase your speed until you come to a speed that is comfortable for you. You can always increase your speed and resistance later to fully maximize your work out.

Rowing machines give a full body workout and work both the muscles as well as your heart (cardio) in the same exercise. It is important to warm up prior to beginning your workout with a rowing machine. This will help you to avoid straining your muscles and allow you work out longer. Warm up exercises should be done for a few minutes before boarding the exercise machine.

Once you are all warmed up and ready, check the resistance on the rowing machine. If you are using one of the rowing machines in a gym, this is very important, but if you are using a home rowing machine, you probably already have the resistance set where you need it.

Hand Position

You will need to learn how to properly grip the handles of your rowing machine. You want a firm but relaxed grip on the machine so that you are not putting too much stress on your arm muscles. Gripping the handles too tightly will cause you to use those muscles for the grip and they won’t be able to benefit from the workout as much.

Rowing machines are made to replicate the actual exercise made on water. Like the actual rowing, exercising on a rowing machine makes the upper and lower body to work. And the good thing about this is that you can work your legs, arms, shins, shoulders, and lower back without inflicting any impact on the joints.

Using proper rowing techniques.

Learning how to row is as easy as riding a bicycle machine. All you have to do is to pull the handle in your direction while sliding your seat by pushing your legs. But as easy as it may sound, it might take a while to realize whether you are properly doing the right rowing technique. One big tip to share is to sit properly on the rowing machine while maintaining the proper posture every time you take the stroke. If you purpose is to improve your strength and stamina, much harder intensity of rowing is needed. But overworking will not do the job if you are on the high intensity. This is the rule: if you are working on light intensity, you can row at your aerobic phase and if you are rowing on a much heavier intensity, do it slowly.

Rowing with the right resistance.

The strength of your rowing will determine the effect of your exercise on your body. The harder you row means you can tone and strengthen your muscles while rowing for long hours increases your stamina. Make sure though you can keep up with the type of rowing resistance you are using.

Always seek the advice of your physician before starting any form of exercises and rowing is no different. With a physician approval, exercising with a rowing machine can get you into shape in no time if you keep to a regular schedule and doing it correctly.

Training Program sample

Here’s a good training plan designed for beginners to get you fit and strong and ready for the summer Row for 20 minutes at 20 strokes per minute to give you enough time to concentrate on your technique. Begin with a 4-minute warm up and finish with two minutes to cool down.

Enjoy!